Can't ride through Indian Reserves?!

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I am from Alberta Canada and was riding around some forrestry trunk roads in the Waiparous area and wanted to take back roads home instead of the highway. I was on HWY 734 and turned North up Range Road 61 and noticed I was passing through an Indian Reserve (didn't think much of it). There were 30km/h signs around and children playing signs and I obeyed the speed limits. My butt was sore so I was standing up on the pegs to change position when some guy honked at me from behind. I pulled over to let him pass and he pulled in front of me and stopped. I stopped and he asked me what I was doing. I said I was riding to calgary on backroads and he said I was on a reserve and not welcome. He said I would have to turn around and leave and he was going to follow me out. I asked if I could drive through and leave that way, he said I had to turn around and leave. I didn't make a fuss and turned around and left (mindful not to speed). He not only followed me out of the reserve but turned and followed me on the highway too.

I was kind of uncomfortable with being followed, I thought he may be just going the same way as me so turned down another back road and he didn't follow.

I didn't think I was doing anything wrong riding through but maybe I am wrong. Do any of you know what the rules are regarding riding through reserves?

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I don't know how they are for sure in Canada, but I suspect they are similar to the US. In the US, the reservation is a sovereign area with its own set of laws. When I was in South Dakota, I went to a casino on a reservation. I wanted to take a different way out, and was told by my colleague, a local town police officer, that we could not. We had to stay only on the designated road., and if not, I was told we could end up in "kangaroo court". I'm not sure what he meant by that, and I didn't ask.

30. A person who trespasses on a reserve is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding fifty dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month, or to both.”

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Keep that in mind if you find an Indian off the reservation, escort him back on. I am sure he will completely understand.

If they do not want people on 'thier land' (which is fine, just liike any country, even Iran can do that), then they need to post signs and put in gates. Also be sure government funds (your tax dollars) are not used to mainain those roads.

You cannot have your cake and eat it too.

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flossandfly - I have heard this too about the reservations around us. I guess some of them they will let you pass if you are respectful but in most cases they don't want you on their land and turn you around.

Most of the reservations have signs that say no trespassing. You did the right thing by not trying to run it. They can apparently get pretty made if you screw with them.

Its rough will so much Indian land between us and the mountains but its better than no Indian land with no features to ride.

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Now that I know not to go through Reserves I won't. I will be aware to gas up at every opportunity while exploring in case I have to turn around drive longer then expected to get home.

I did see a sign saying it was a reserve but didn't notice a no trespassing sign. From now on I will treat a reserve sign as a no trespassing sign.

I have also heard terrifying stories about things that happen on reserves and have no wish to be included in one of those stories. I have told some people about this and many of them can contribute a story of something bad happening. By bad I don't mean 50 dollar fine either.

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To be completely honest, it's all "their land" as I recall we took it from them with religious freedom in mind but committed genocide on the indigenous peoples of this land in the name of western religion.

Remember kids, Washington was no better than Hitler, a slave owning genocidal maniac.

...Land of the "free" indeed. They call it the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.

And now we keep these people in caged communities and complain when we can't use their land to travel through? Yeah, it's pretty rough for us...

Wow, well I don't know about you but I have never killed anyone in the name of religion. They don't pay taxes or have to report income, they get tax money from our federal government, they get preferential treatment at universities, banks, scholarships, SBS loans, don't have to abide by state fish and game laws, etc. And they are free to leave the "reservation" and become a working member of any society they want and they could turn down the money they are given, but they don't and they choose to not improve their way of life through hard work like the rest of the world so let’s try not to turn this into a pity party. Yes horrible things were done to them in the past, but now is not the past and the Indian nations need to step up and remove themselves from second class citizenship. No one can do it for them. It is already BS that they don’t pay any sort of taxes on the gaming that takes place on the reservation. William1 is right, they shouldn’t be allowed to have it both ways. That is it...i am off my soap box.

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To be completely honest, it's all "their land" as I recall we took it from them with religious freedom in mind but committed genocide on the indigenous peoples of this land in the name of western religion.

Remember kids, Washington was no better than Hitler, a slave owning genocidal maniac.

...Land of the "free" indeed. They call it the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.

And now we keep these people in caged communities and complain when we can't use their land to travel through? Yeah, it's pretty rough for us...

I agree. It is their land. And as long as your tax dollars do not subsidize it and they place appropriate signage, they have every right to close their borders. And at the same time realize that by doing so, their travel outside of their borders may be restricted likewise. Jut like CDN/US or MX/US. Called 'Borders'.

Remember Genghis Kahn? How about Stalin? Attila the Hun? Spanish Inquisition? The Romans? I could go on and on and on.

They are far from in 'caged communities' They have land they do not allow others to pass through. No one forces them to stay there. They are more than happy to let you go to their casinos though....

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"liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding fifty dollars" makes me think you would have to go to court and if found guilty then pay a fine. At any rate I was mostly happy that this fellow didn't call up some buddies to give me an old fashioned @ss beating. I probably would not have obeyed the speed limit on my way out if I saw him phoning to get others to come.

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"liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding fifty dollars" makes me think you would have to go to court and if found guilty then pay a fine. At any rate I was mostly happy that this fellow didn't call up some buddies to give me an old fashioned @ss beating. I probably would not have obeyed the speed limit on my way out if I saw him phoning to get others to come.

I should of said this earlier but I do think you handled this exactly as you should of. Doesn't mean it is fair but you did the right thing for yourself.

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Maybe each reservation has its own take on things. I've stopped off I-90 in NY between Buffalo and the PA border many many times to get gas on a reservation there. No one ever said anything to me, and many times there were res police at the gas station. I rode my XR through that same reservation last year on my way through NY state and didn't catch any flack. I don't want a beating though, maybe I'll stay away from it from now on.

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To be completely honest, it's all "their land" as I recall we took it from them with religious freedom in mind but committed genocide on the indigenous peoples of this land in the name of western religion.

Remember kids, Washington was no better than Hitler, a slave owning genocidal maniac.

...Land of the "free" indeed. They call it the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.

And now we keep these people in caged communities and complain when we can't use their land to travel through? Yeah, it's pretty rough for us...

Nearly every tribe that is now "confined" by a reservation (they're 100% free to leave and join America, btw), got to be the masters of their land by killing off, enslaving, or stealing the lands of tribes that came before them....often brutally so. They committed genocide, long before we supposedly taught it to them.

The plains cultures, especially, were responsible for hundreds of smaller tribes being erased from history.

And, while they have every right to exist in a sovereign land by treaty, many abuse that by practicing bigotry towards Americans who hold no grudge or have done them no wrong, while enjoying all the federal money we send them, and the exceptions to our national laws they are protected under. Worse, they leave the reservation and expect to be treated fairly and quite unlike they would treat us in their homes.

Whites did the natives wrong, no doubt about it, but they are not the noble savage of popular flea-market myth....so peddle that to someone who doesn't know about the history of those tribes.

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I grew up around 5 separate reservations all in close proximity and we were taught the rules and regulations of them in school and by local police. Basically do what they say because they literally can/will get away with murder. I've witness this numerous times in the newspaper not in person lol

Not sure how Canada deals with it but you did the correct thing. If you're not going to the casino do not go out there. Unless you are with one of their own.

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To be completely honest, it's all "their land" as I recall we took it from them with religious freedom in mind but committed genocide on the indigenous peoples of this land in the name of western religion.

Maybe you're a vampire or some other immortal being, but myself, I have never killed anyone, nor committed genocide of any race of people. Myself, I was not around when this was going on. And neither were any of them.

Remember kids, Washington was no better than Hitler, a slave owning genocidal maniac.

You should actually take some time to study Washington and his views on the natives, you might learn something.

He was a dink about the slavery thing, but you're dead wrong on the natives.

...Land of the "free" indeed. They call it the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.

At the ripe old age of 23, you're already bitter, disenchanted, and failed at making your own way in the world?

And now we keep these people in caged communities and complain when we can't use their land to travel through? Yeah, it's pretty rough for us...

Maybe you've never seen a Sovereign nation owned by a tribal authority, but I've seen hundreds of them from coast to coast, and never once seen a fence around one keeping the owners of it in.

Being that they are treated as a nation unto themselves, I feel that if one wants to associate and travel to and from that nation, they should be required to present a passport, proof of vehicle ownership, pass customs and pay duties on any and all items brought with them.

But, today is a different time, we are all afforded the same opportunities regardless of the color of our skin, who our ancestors were, or where they came from. Hell, I'm native American, I was born and raised here, and intend on living my whole life here.

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It sounds like if they want you there then it's no problem. If they don't want you there then it's a problem. If they have a casino and gas station they probably want you and if not then probably not. I will feel free to go to casinos and will assume I am not welcome the rest of the time. There are plenty of back roads in Alberta.